Niskayuna Football Unable to Secure a State Championship Berth

Niskayuna Football was nothing short of spectacular this season, roaring back to win their second straight Section II Class A Super Bowl against the Warriors of Averill Park. They rolled past Cornwall in the Regional Championship, but once again could not overcome the top-ranked Somers Tuskers at Middletown High School in the State Semifinal, a rematch of last year’s game. The 21-7 loss was a tough way to end this incredible season, but nothing can take away from a season that will go down in the record books at Niskayuna High School.

Niskayuna finished off the regular season with a record of 7-1, losing their only game to a Class AA opponent in Shenendehowa, who went on to lose their Regional Matchup to eventual state champion Carmel. Nisky’s opening matchup in the Section II Class A playoffs was against Troy, who they rolled past easily with a 62-0 victory. They went on to play Bethlehem, who they were able to beat handily as well, with a 35-7 win. That set up a rematch of last year's Section II Super Bowl game against Averill Park. The Silver Warriors had beaten Averill Park 41-7 in the regular season, but the AP Warriors on the other side were hungry for a win, and they showed it by keeping it close with Niskayuna. The score was 14-7 going into the fourth quarter, but Niskayuna was able to pull away in the fourth quarter with running back Isaiah Linyear’s third touchdown run of the night, and a rushing touchdown from wide receiver Cam Grasso to seal the game. Averill Park, with one of the area's top running backs in Jacob Phelps, kept the ball on the ground almost the entire game, but Nisky’s defense showed they were the real deal, holding them to a subdued offensive performance. Despite also lacking production on offense, especially in the passing game, Niskayuna was able to grasp on and win by a score of 28-7, booking themselves a spot in the state playoffs against Section IX champion Cornwall.

Niskayuna came into their matchup against Cornwall eager to bounce back, and they did so in tremendous fashion, winning 49-14 against the undefeated Dragons. Quarterback Ethan Gilson bounced back from throwing 3 interceptions the previous week against Averill Park, throwing for 205 yards and four touchdowns. He got a ton of help from Grasso, who was named the game MVP after catching three passes for three touchdowns for 144 yards. Nisky’s defense put on an incredible display, forcing five turnovers against a Cornwall offense, which was without their star running back Tyler Vanderpool, as well as quarterback Jaiden Laureano, who suffered an injury to his shoulder in the first quarter.

The game the Silver Warriors had been waiting for the whole season had arrived. The Somers Tuskers were back and ready to face off in the rematch of last year's state semifinal game, which Somers won 35-7. Niskayuna showed they were capable of keeping up with the intensity of the top-ranked Somers squad, as Isaiah Linyear broke off a 31 yard run on the first play of the game. Niskayuna was able to score later on in the first quarter, as a run by Grasso put the Silver Warriors up 7-0. However, Nisky’s jubilation didn’t last for very long. Somers responded with a touchdown of their own, driving 40 yards after a short punt to knot the game up at 7-7 with 4:29 left before halftime. Gilson then threw an interception in the final minute of the first half, and Somers was able to score quickly, scoring on a designed quarterback run with four seconds remaining to make it 14-7 heading into the locker room.

Niskayuna’s offense became stagnant in the second half, as Somers' defense wasn’t allowing Nisky to get many drives to develop. The Silver Warriors turned the ball over four times, two of them being interceptions by Miquel Iglesias for the Tuskers. Somers was able to score one more time with 4:40 remaining in the third quarter. Quarterback Mac Sullivan had all of the Tuskers’ touchdowns, using his legs on the same type of quarterback keeper for his three touchdown runs. 

While the 21-7 loss might not have been what the Silver Warriors were hoping for in their rematch with Somers, no one can argue that this season was not a success. With their only losses coming to some of the best teams in the state, Niskayuna clearly showed they are a force to be reckoned with. Next season, Niskayuna will look forward to building another championship-level team, despite the losses of key seniors on both sides of the ball.